The Pursuit of Happiness' debut set a standard for Canadian pop/rock -- their tight arrangements, self-deprecating lyrics, and bitter yet funny cynicism paved the way for Canadian acts to come, like the Odds,
Sloan, and
Barenaked Ladies -- although few Canadian artists are as sexually frustrated as TPOH.
Love Junk features the minor hits "She's So Young" and "Hard to Laugh," as well as the band's signature hit, "I'm an Adult Now." While the song put TPOH on the map in Canada, it was initially banned by MTV due to its "naughty" (for 1986) lyrics about girls ("I can't even look at young girls anymore/People will think I'm some kind of pervert") and drugs ("I'd sure look like a fool dead in a ditch somewhere with my mind full of chemicals like some cheese-eating high school boy"). Picked up by college radio, "I'm an Adult Now" also helped spawn the more mainstream hit "She's So Young." On
Love Junk, singer/songwriter
Moe Berg mixes frustration, rejection, and anguish with hefty doses of humor -- the trademark TPOH sound -- and the album remains one of the band's finest efforts. ~ Gina Boldman